Geologic Characterization of Young Alluvial Basin-Fill Deposits from Drill Hole Data in Yucca Flat, Nye County, Nevada.

Yucca Flat is a topographic and structural basin in the northeastern part of the Nevada Test Site (NTS) in Nye County, Nevada, that has been the site of numerous underground nuclear tests; many of these tests occurred within the young alluvial basin-fill deposits. The migration of radionuclides to the Paleozoic carbonate aquifer involves passage through this thick, heterogeneous section of Tertiary and Quaternary rock. An understanding of the lateral and vertical changes in the material properties of young alluvial basin-fill deposits will aid in the further development of the hydrogeologic framework and the delineation of hydrostratigraphic units and hydraulic properties required for simulating ground-water flow in the Yucca Flat area. This report by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, presents data and interpretation regarding the three-dimensional variability of the shallow alluvial aquifers in areas of testing at Yucca Flat, data that are potentially useful in the understanding of the subsurface flow system. This report includes a summary and interpretation of alluvial basin-fill stratigraphy in the Yucca Flat area based on drill hole data from 285 selected drill holes. Spatial variations in lithology and grain size of the Neogene basin-fill sediments can be established when data from numerous drill holes are considered together. Lithologic variations are related to different depositional environments within the basin including alluvial fan, channel, basin axis, and playa deposits

Electrical Resistivity and Seismic Surveys at the Nevada Test Site, Nevada, April 2007

In April 2007, the USGS collected direct-current (DC) electrical resistivity data and shear- (S) and compressional- (P) wave seismic data to provide new detail of previously mapped, overlapping fault splays at two administrative areas in the Nevada Test Site (NTS). In NTS Area 7, we collected two-dimensional DC resistivity data along a transect crossing the Yucca Fault parallel to, and between, two transects along which resistivity data were collected in a previous study in 2006. In addition, we collected three-dimensional DC resistivity data in a grid that overlies part of the 2007 transect. The DC resistivity data show that the fault has a footwall that is more conductive than the hanging wall and an along-strike progression of the fault in a location where overlapping splays are present. Co-located with the northernmost of the two 2006 DC resistivity transects, we acquired S- and P-wave seismic data for both reflection and refraction processing. The S-wave data are corrupted by large amounts of converted (P-wave) energy likely due to the abundance of fractured caliche in the shallow subsurface. The P-wave data show minimal reflected energy, but they show clear refracted first arrivals. We have inverted these first arrival times to determine P-wave seismic velocity models. The seismic model for the transect in Area 7 shows low velocities extending to the base of the model at the location of the Yucca Fault, as well as low velocities at the eastern end of the transect, in the vicinity of the adjacent crater. These new surveys provide further detail about the geometry of the Yucca Fault in this location where it shows two overlapping splays. We collected P- and S-wave seismic data along a transect in the southern part of NTS Area 2, corresponding with the location of a 2006 DC resistivity transect that targeted a set of small faults identified with field mapping. Again, the S-wave data are difficult to interpret. The P-wave data show clear first arrivals that we inverted, yielding a velocity model that shows lateral heterogeneity similar to the 2006 DC resistivity models. Finally, we collected P-wave data along a second transect in Area 2, located north of the first line and in an area of a very minor fault that was targeted by another 2006 DC resistivity survey. The P-wave refraction velocity model shows generally high velocities, with a zone of somewhat lower velocities in the central part of the transect. The position of the low velocity zone corresponds with the location of a minor fault, though it is unclear whether the two are related. Together, these results demonstrate the value of geophysical data for mapping the subsurface extent of faults. The 2007 DC resistivity data complement the 2006 data and provide important new detail of the overlapping fault splays. The seismic data demonstrate the ability of P-wave refraction methods to identify the damage zones at faults, and they show the difficulties associated with S-wave methods in areas with caliche. Combining all of the geophysical data from the Area 7 studies, we are able to develop a coherent interpretation of the relation between the site geology, the fault, and the observations

Evaluating connection of aquifers to springs and streams, Great Basin National Park and vicinity, Nevada

Federal agencies that oversee land management for much of the Snake Range in eastern Nevada, including the management of Great Basin National Park by the National Park Service, need to understand the potential extent of adverse effects to federally managed lands from nearby groundwater development. As a result, this study was developed (1) to attain a better understanding of aquifers controlling groundwater flow on the eastern side of the southern part of the Snake Range and their connection with aquifers in the valleys, (2) to evaluate the relation between surface water and groundwater along the piedmont slopes, (3) to evaluate sources for Big Springs and Rowland Spring, and (4) to assess groundwater flow from southern Spring Valley into northern Hamlin Valley. The study focused on two areas—the first, a northern area along the east side of Great Basin National Park that included Baker, Lehman, and Snake Creeks, and a second southern area that is the potential source area for Big Springs. Data collected specifically for this study included the following: (1) geologic field mapping; (2) drilling, testing, and water quality sampling from 7 test wells; (3) measuring discharge and water chemistry of selected creeks and springs; (4) measuring streambed hydraulic gradients and seepage rates from 18 shallow piezometers installed into the creeks; and (5) monitoring stream temperature along selected reaches to identify places of groundwater inflow. The Snake Range was formed by a generally normal-faulted uplift, where late Proterozoic and Cambrian siliciclastic rocks and metamorphic rocks are present at the highest altitudes and younger Paleozoic carbonate rocks are exposed along the flanks. The consolidated rocks are intruded by Jurassic to Tertiary age plutons, which are most common between the Lehman and Snake Creek drainage basins. Older Cenozoic rocks, including Oligocene volcanic rocks and Miocene sedimentary rocks, crop out locally and fill the basins that underlie Snake, Spring, and Hamlin Valleys. Younger Terti

Evaluating connection of aquifers to springs and streams, Great Basin National Park and vicinity, Nevada

Federal agencies that oversee land management for much of the Snake Range in eastern Nevada, including the management of Great Basin National Park by the National Park Service, need to understand the potential extent of adverse effects to federally managed lands from nearby groundwater development. As a result, this study was developed (1) to attain a better understanding of aquifers controlling groundwater flow on the eastern side of the southern part of the Snake Range and their connection with aquifers in the valleys, (2) to evaluate the relation between surface water and groundwater along the piedmont slopes, (3) to evaluate sources for Big Springs and Rowland Spring, and (4) to assess groundwater flow from southern Spring Valley into northern Hamlin Valley. The study focused on two areas—the first, a northern area along the east side of Great Basin National Park that included Baker, Lehman, and Snake Creeks, and a second southern area that is the potential source area for Big Springs. Data collected specifically for this study included the following: (1) geologic field mapping; (2) drilling, testing, and water quality sampling from 7 test wells; (3) measuring discharge and water chemistry of selected creeks and springs; (4) measuring streambed hydraulic gradients and seepage rates from 18 shallow piezometers installed into the creeks; and (5) monitoring stream temperature along selected reaches to identify places of groundwater inflow. The Snake Range was formed by a generally normal-faulted uplift, where late Proterozoic and Cambrian siliciclastic rocks and metamorphic rocks are present at the highest altitudes and younger Paleozoic carbonate rocks are exposed along the flanks. The consolidated rocks are intruded by Jurassic to Tertiary age plutons, which are most common between the Lehman and Snake Creek drainage basins. Older Cenozoic rocks, including Oligocene volcanic rocks and Miocene sedimentary rocks, crop out locally and fill the basins that underlie Snake, Spring, and Hamlin Valleys. Younger Terti

Lake-Level History of Lake Michigan for the Past 12,000 Years: The Record From Deep Lacustrine Sediments

Collection and analysis of an extensive set of seismic-reflection profiles and cores from southern Lake Michigan have provided new data that document the history of the lake basin for the past 12,000 years. Analyses of the seismic data, together with radiocarbon dating, magnetic, sedimentologic, isotopic, and paleontologic studies of core samples, have allowed us to reconstruct lake-level changes during this recent part of the lake\u27s history. The post-glacial history of lake-level changes in the Lake Michigan basin begins about 11.2 ka with the fall from the high Calumet level, caused by the retreat of the Two Rivers glacier, which had blocked the northern outlet of the lake. This lake-level fall was temporarily reversed by a major influx of water from glacial Lake Agassiz (about 10.6 ka), during which deposition of the distinctive gray Wilmette Bed of the Lake Michigan Formation interrupted deposition of red glaciolacustrine sediment. Lake level then continued to fall, culminating in the opening of the North Bay outlet at about 10.3 ka. During the resulting Chippewa low phase, lake level was about 80 m lower than it is today in the southern basin of Lake Michigan. The rise of the early Holocene lake level, controlled primarily by isostatic rebound of the North Bay outlet, resulted in a prominent, planar, transgressive unconformity that eroded most of the shoreline features below present lake level. Superimposed on this overall rise in lake level, a second influx of water from Lake Agassiz temporarily raised lake levels an unknown amount about 9.1 ka. At about 7 ka, lake level may have fallen below the level of the outlet because of sharply drier climate. Sometime between 6 and 5 ka, the character of the lake changed dramatically, probably due mostly to climatic causes, becoming highly undersaturated with respect to calcium carbonate and returning primary control of lake level to the isostatically rising North Bay outlet. Post-Nipissing (about 5 ka) lake level has fallen about 6 m due to erosion of the Port Huron outlet, a trend around which occurred relatively small (± ∼2 m), short-term fluctuations controlled mainly by climatic changes. These cyclic fluctuations are reflected in the sed-imentological and sediment-magnetic properties of the sediments. © 1994, International Association for Great Lakes Research. All rights reserved